US proposes $389 million for chip and materials research

Four companies are in line for $389 million in proposed U.S. research funding for semiconductor and critical-materials technologies, the Commerce Department said on October 22. The department has signed letters of intent covering projects that include components for commercial fusion.

The funding would give the U.S. government minority ownership positions in the recipients, Commerce said. Those stakes would carry no voting rights or control.

The largest proposed award, capped at $175 million, is for Washington-based Helion. Its work would cover high-voltage semiconductors and advanced modules for managing power in fusion generation. Helion said an additional $50 million would come from new private investment.

Commonwealth Fusion Systems, based in Massachusetts, is slated for as much as $85 million. Its semiconductor research would address plasma heating using radio frequencies, electronics for power systems, fusion diagnostics and electronics hardened against radiation. Commonwealth said robotic maintenance technology would also benefit.

An award capped at $73 million would support Vertical Semiconductor's work on vertical gallium nitride devices for powering AI data center racks. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology spinoff said the money would help advance transistor research and accelerate domestic production.

Sibelco North America's proposed allocation is up to $56 million for improving purification of ultra-high-purity quartz for semiconductor manufacturing. The subsidiary of Belgium's Sibelco said it would develop leaching technologies and establish a North Carolina demonstration facility for product testing.

Commerce said it has awarded 19 semiconductor research grants in recent months through a $10 billion fund authorized by Congress in 2022.